Background: Drug use evaluation (DUE) aims at improving the patients’ care. Studying the administration pattern of intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) is an important research topic due to its significant role in the treatment and controlling of many disorders, high prices, and limited availability of this drug.
Methods: This observational cross-sectional study was conducted at Shahid Sadoughi Hospital in Yazd, central Iran, from May to September 2014. The orders of different wards in the hospital for IVIG given to the hospital central pharmacy were surveyed. Also, a special form developed for evaluation the method of administration. The related physician and nurse were consulted on drug complications and the causes. Finally, the gleaned data were compared to the available standards on the prescription and administration of IVIG.
Results: A total of 75 patients received IVIG during this study. 58.7% of the prescriptions belonged to the cases approved by Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The most frequent cause of the use of IVIG was idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP). The rate and dose of administration was suitable in most of the patients, yet, the measurement of laboratory parameters required for IVIG were observed in only a few cases. Complications occurred in 26.7% of the patients receiving it, which was mostly related to infusion-related reactions. On the whole, 3922 g IVIG was used during this study of which 1848 g belonged to the cases approved by FDA.
Conclusion: Regarding the high costs of IVIG, complications, and limited information on the quality of the effect of this drug in the treatment of many cases, physicians should be cautious enough with its appropriate use. Besides, the presence of a clinical pharmacist in the health-care team not only improves the quality of drug therapy and treatment results, but also plays an important part in decreasing the treatment costs for the patients.